While the Westfield brand already exists in the UK and US, this month will be the first time the name is used in Europe with the rebranding of seven shopping centres in France, Sweden, Poland and Prague in what is now the Czech Republic.

In Australia and New Zealand, Westfield shopping centres are owned and operated by Scentre Group and not Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield.

The first of the rebranded malls in Europe to open is Westfield Les Quatre Temps in the suburbs of Paris with singer John Legend performing at the launch on Thursday.

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Group Chief executive of Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Christophe Cuvillier, said launching the brand in Europe was a major milestone for the group following its acquisition of Westfield in 2018. He said it was the first time a rebranding exercise had been rolled out at such a large scale in the industry.

“Westfield represents the gold standard of destinations globally with a combination of first class retail, dining and leisure with exceptional events and services. Creating unique experiences provides a greater reason for customers to visit and is the future of retail,” Mr Cuvillier said.

The brand that was created by Frank Lowy in the 1950s will be introduced to Europe for the first time. Brendan Esposito

Chief marketing officer for Europe, Myf Ryan, said the rebranded shopping centres would maintain their local identity and relevance while building on the success of Westfield shopping centres around the world.

Mr Lowy who was born in Czechoslovakia, now Slovakia, and survived the Holocaust in Hungary, moved to Australia in the 1950s where he built his property development business from scratch. Following the sale of Westfield last year he retired and moved to Israel.